> Edit: Why the downvote?

Maybe it's because you've said you don't understand e-bikes for the ridiculous reason that they don't fit your very specific living situation like what kind of housing you have, which floor you live on and how many bags you're prepared to carry.

Other people have different living situations, and e-bikes suit them. It's not a mystery.

Then again what is the living situation ('use case') where an e-bike works? I also made the example with a house and garage. I don't see any killer use case but are happy to learn relevant use cases.

I mean just to look at one part of the world, but which many of us will understand, look at somewhere like San Mateo, the sub-urban area halfway between San Francisco and San Jose in Silicon Valley. Imagine living in a house with a garage somewhere like Foster City.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@37.5466469,-122.2920167,13z?h...

A family could get all around this area very nicely on an electric bike. Maybe you bike to an office in Redwood Shores, your wife teaches the College of San Mateo campus up the hill and she can get there on an electric bike there as well. She basically recharges it on the way back on the down hill. Your daughter goes to Hillsdale High School where she can electric bike to and works a part time job at the Whole Foods Market there which can bike to as well.

Your suburb example was flawed because not everyone is trying to get into a big city centre.

(1) Having a town house with some wall socket at the entry or a garage and (2) not trying to get into a big city centre might be a use case, yes. Thanks for elaborating your example but I don't think that this use case is strong or ubiquitous enough (maybe in SF) to lead e-bikes to mass adoption. I still think the concept of an e-bike, in particular the charging, is super flawed. If the battery is removable you can charge this thing but you have to carry a fat battery pack back and forth and your bike looks super clumsy (and yes, all bikes with removable batteries look clumsy) or if it's integrated it looks nice but it's hard to charge that thing.

I mean, I see that all bike manufacturer start to produce e-bikes and they form a large part of their revenues because they are much more expensive than normal bikes but if I'd make a mini poll here, how many of you guys have an e-bike, how many a normal bike? I bet the rate is 1:10 (e-bike:bike) or even lower.

When I lived in SF, I parked my bike in the apartment parking garage (where (I think) there were no power outlets). However, my primary biking destination was work, where I brought the bike into the office where I could have charged it if I had an eBike.

In the apartment where I live now, there's a dedicated card-access bike room with power outlets, so eBike owners can charge up there. (the room wasn't designed for eBike charging, there are only 2 duplex outlets, but a couple power strips mean that everyone with an eBike can plug in at once.

Though SF is small enough that an eBike is probably not necessary for most people - I lived near the top of Nob Hill and managed to commute on a regular bike for 8 years (2 of those years I was commuting to Marin). When I moved out to the Sunset, then there was an easy route to downtown (the "wiggle") to avoid the hills)

I'm having trouble believing that you're making a serious argument against eBikes, since you dismissed the solution to your problem (removable batteries) because it "looks super clumsy". As a recreational cyclist, I've always looked for reasons to ride a bike rather than looking for reasons why I can't.

I've stayed away from eBikes up till now because I haven't had a commute that really needs it, but I'm contemplating moving to where my bike commute will go from my current flat 5 miles to 15 miles with some short steep climbs in the middle. That's a commute where an eBike makes more sense to me. (but not a 1000W semi-motorcycle, just looking for a bit of boost for my aging knees to get up the hills)

If the battery is removable, it will be stolen.

As will everything else on the bike that's not bolted on (and sometimes even that is stolen). So take it with you when you park in an unsecured area.

My battery is easily removable and has a handle. When you are riding a bike you usually don't carry stuff that you have to use your hands to carry. I always have a backpack. In any case I always have at least one hand available to carry other stuff.

I charge the battery in my entry at home every day, but I could probably charge it only once or twice a week and that would still be sufficient.

Let's say you weigh 70kg. The 7kg lighter bike only saves you less than 10% weight overall but a 300W motor easily multiplies your power.

You can use bike's motor when pushing it up the stairs so you don't have to carry it.